Ra's Bane
by maninblack5
Summary: In an abandoned Goa'uld archive, SG-1 finds mention of a race that once opposed the Goa'uld, now mentioned only in Jaffa legend. But they soon find that this race may still live...
1. Chapter 1: What they left behind

Chapter 1: What they left behind

"Incoming wormhole!" Walter called as the stargate's chevrons lit up and the familiar wormhole flared into existence. Shortly after, Brigadier General Jack O'Neill entered the control room.

"Receiving SG-1's IDC, sir." Walter stated.

"Open the iris." Came the General's reply.

Walter opened the iris as ordered, and SG-1, compromised of Colonel Samantha Carter, Teal'c, and Doctor Daniel Jackson came through the gate. O'Neill noticed that Daniel was carrying a tablet with him, and mentally braced himself for a history lesson about some ancient alien culture or another.

"Good to see ya, folks, meet me in the briefing room in an hour or so and I'll let you tell me all about your latest 'exciting' escapade."

SG-1 had been walking casually through the gate, so O'Neill could only assume that Daniel was the only one who had had any excitement. He had been wrong before, of course, but he knew Daniel well enough to be able to tell when he had found an especially dusty old relic.

An hour later, SG-1 assembled in the briefing room.

"So, what did you find? New threat to the Earth? New threat to the Galaxy? Or, better yet, new threat to all life as we know it?" Jack didn't think they had found any of the aforementioned things, but it never hurt to ask.

"Actually, sir, Daniel thinks he may have found something that could help us against the Goa'uld." Carter replied.

"Oh, has he now?" O'Neill said, with a mock expression of disbelief.

"The Goa'uld had abandoned the planet years ago, from what I could tell. But there were several inscriptions referring to a species known as 'Ra's Bane'." Daniel stated.

"And, who would they be?" O'Neill asked.

"Well, Teal'c could actually explain it better than I could."

"Teal'c? Can you explain it better than Daniel could?"

"Indeed I can, O'Neill. Ra's bane is the name of a group of demons in Jaffa legend. It is said they nearly destroyed the Jaffa, and that the Goa'uld banished them to another realm, and it is only the power of the Goa'uld that holds them at bay. Bra'tac believed that they were an ancient enemy of the Goa'uld, and that they were narrowly defeated only by the combined forces of the system lords. It is said that one of these creatures was a match for twenty Jaffa, and that they wielded weapons of great power."

"The legend about the Goa'uld banishing them to another realm was likely another way to reinforce the whole 'god' routine." Daniel added.

"You called them demons and creatures, that doesn't exactly make them sound like potential allies." O'Neill said.

"It's Jaffa legend, Jack, they sometimes overstate things. Besides, this race isn't around anymore." Daniel replied.

"Fair enough, but how does knowing Jaffa ghost stories help us? Are we going to gather all the system lords around a campfire and continuously tell them this story until they wet themselves?"

"Well, we found a tablet that mentions a planet where this race apparently made its last stand against the Goa'uld. Maybe they left some technology behind that the Goa'uld couldn't salvage for some reason." Daniel responded.

"Carter?"

"Well, sir, I agree with Daniel. We've seen technology that's designed to not work for people with symbionts. If this race really was an enemy of the Goa'uld, they likely would have designed their technology that way. If any technology survived the Goa'uld attack, it likely would have just been left there."

O'Neill thought it over for a moment before replying. "Alright, I'll schedule a mission for tomorrow. Dismissed."

The next day, at approximately three pm, SG-1 assembled in the gate room. The wormhole was open, and the MALP had shown breathable atmosphere and no hostiles near the gate. The world seemed to be a desert, with large craters all over the place. Off in the distance, the MALP's camera could see the scorched remains of a huge city. After O'Neill had given then clearance, SG-1 entered the stargate and within seconds arrived on the planet. It only took a few minutes of walking to reach the ruined city.

Although any color the buildings might have had was now covered up by centuries of decay, the ruins of the skyscrapers still stood high above the cloud line; although only the outer frames of the buildings could be seen. Though the majority of the buildings were skyscrapers, there were a good number of smaller buildings that had visible entrances. After half an hour of searching the city, Carter noticed something. While some of the buildings looked as if they had been bombarded from orbit, most of the buildings showed signs of having been blown up from the inside. Whoever did it had done so in such a way as to leave only the buildings walls behind. Carter pointed this out to Daniel, who was searching one of the smaller buildings.

"Well, that would explain why none of the buildings we've seen so far have had any sort of second floor. The question is, why? The Goa'uld obviously didn't do it. It seems like they arrived here, started bombarding the planet, and then stopped for some reason."

"Perhaps it was because they realized there was no living thing left on the planet." Teal'c suggested.

"Are you saying that this race committed mass suicide before the Goa'uld got here?" Carter asked.

"Or, maybe they just left. It would add up, we haven't seen any bodies, the buildings were destroyed from the inside, and there are no Jaffa here at all. You'd think the Goa'uld would at least leave some soldiers to guard the place if they thought there was something of value here. It makes sense too, they were losing the war, so they needed the Goa'uld to think they were all dead. They made it look as if they had already been destroyed by someone else so that they could settle on another planet." Daniel said.

"Alright, if that's the case, there probably isn't any technology left here. If they were smart, they would have removed or destroyed anything the Goa'uld could have possibly gotten their hands on. Let's head back to the gate." Carter replied.

"Wait, wait, can we stay just a little longer? Maybe they left some clue as to where they went."

"I do not believe that they would risk the Goa'uld obtaining such information, Daniel Jackson." Teal'c said.

"You're right, Teal'c." Daniel sighed. "They probably didn't want to risk the Goa'uld finding them before they could rebuild." With a look of dejection, Daniel followed Carter and Teal'c back towards the stargate.


	2. Chapter 2: Revalations

Chapter 2: Revelations

As SG-1 approached the stargate, the chevrons began to light up. Carter gave the order to take cover behind a nearby dune. The stargate opened, and a group of twenty Jaffa bearing the mark of Yu and carrying a large golden box came through.

"It would appear that we were mistaken in assuming that there was no Goa'uld presence on this planet." Teal'c whispered.

"I'm not sure we were. The Goa'uld usually have guards posted near the stargate. I think these Jaffa don't come here that often." Daniel whispered back.

"Teal'c, what's that device they're carrying?" Carter asked.

Teal'c took out his binoculars and looked at the device.

"It is a bomb. Not as powerful as the one we found in Sekhmet's ark."

"All the more reason for us to get out of here, then. We'll wait till they get a fair distance from the gate before dialing-"

Daniel hastily interrupted Carter before she could finish.

"W-wait, we can't leave yet. What if they're trying to use the bomb to open a hidden vault of some kind? I mean, the presence of a group of Jaffa here indicates that there is something the Goa'uld want on this planet."

"Alright, keep quiet and follow me." Carter ordered.

To their surprise, the Jaffa did not enter the abandoned city to the north, but instead went west into the desert. It was difficult to keep hidden, but there were enough hills in the area for decent cover. The Jaffa almost never looked behind them, indicating that they were extremely focused on getting wherever it was they were going.

After ten minutes, the Jaffa came to a stop near a pillar of rough stone. One of them dug around in the sand surrounding the obelisk for a few moments. Shortly after he stood up, the sand in front of the pillar began to fall away as a hidden staircase became visible.

"So….are we going to follow them down there?" Daniel asked, as the Jaffa descended the staircase with the bomb.

"Too risky, we'll wait until they leave." Carter replied.

"And if they manage to find whatever they're looking for down there?" Daniel asked.

"In that case we'll get to see whether we can take on a group of twenty Jaffa by ourselves."

After a few moments, SG-1 felt the ground shake under their feet. The Jaffa ascended the staircase a few moments later and began to walk back towards the stargate.

"Well, they weren't carrying anything. The bomb must not have done what whatever they hoped it would do. Let's head down there and see if we have any better luck." Carter said.

SG-1 descended the staircase into a large room lit by torches. The walls, floor, and ceiling were made of some kind of blue tinged metal they had never seen before. There was a large scorch mark in the center of the room. On the far wall were five square depressions with an inscription above them that read: "Sins of the False Gods". In both front corners of the room stood small boxes containing metallic square tiles that appeared to fir precisely in the depressions on the wall. The tiles were inscribed with names of both emotions and vices.

"Well, the puzzle looks straight forward enough. You just input the tiles that are inscribed with the traits of the System lords. It's clever though, no Goa'uld would admit its failings and not many Jaffa in the service a system lord would even consider the fact that his lord is flawed." Daniel said after examining the tiles and inscription.

"Whatever this metal is, it was able to withstand the bomb without incurring much damage. Even the boxes are relatively unscathed." Carter observed.

As Daniel began to insert the tiles into the wall, Carter and Teal'c heard the sound of heavy footsteps coming down the staircase.

"I believe we are about to be in the presence of visitors, Daniel Jackson." Teal'c said as he readied his staff weapon.

"Damn it. They must have noticed us and doubled back. Better hurry up, Daniel!" Carter said.

As Daniel inputted the final tile, the wall on which the depressions were began to slide away, revealing a smaller, but wider room with a stone pedestal in the center. At the moment that the wall had disappeared completely, the first of the group of Jaffa reached the bottom of the staircase. Carter quickly fired her p-90 and felled the Jaffa in a matter of seconds. Teal'c killed the next one with well- aimed staff weapon blast as both he and Carter began to back into the newly opened chamber. Daniel was already inside and had grabbed had small wooden chest that had been sitting on the pedestal.

Carter and Teal'c took cover on either side of the opening while Daniel ducked behind the pedestal. The staircase was narrow enough that only one or two Jaffa could enter the main room at a time, even so, SG-1 was hard pressed to avoid the constant barrage of staff weapon blasts. At one point, a Jaffa came so close to hitting Daniel that a small patch of his hair, which was sticking up at the time, was set ablaze. When the battle was over, the back wall of the second chamber had been hit by so many staff blasts that it was black all over. However, SG-1 walked out of the underground chamber unscathed. Except, of course, for Daniel's hair which had briefly caught fire, forcing him to empty his canteen on his head.

They dialed the SGC, sent their GDO code through, and returned uneventfully.

The debriefing took place an hour after they returned.

"Well, I take it they had awful barbers on that planet." O'Neill commented as he took a seat at the briefing room's table.

"We ran into a group of Yu's Jaffa, sir. They were trying to blast open a chamber hidden inside an underground vault. We thought they had left when we went to open it, but they must have found our tracks and doubled back." Carter explained.

"Alright. So, was the valiant sacrifice of Daniel's hair in vain?" O'Neill asked.

Daniel hadn't had all of his hair burned away, but it was in a hopeless mess.

"Well, we did find a gate address. We think it indicates the planet where this race fled when they realized they were going to lose their war against the Goa'uld. The planet we just visited had no remnants of this race's technology on it, but I'm fairly sure that there will be something of value on the planet that thye left for. The address isn't in the Abydos cartouche, so the Goa'uld wouldn't have known about it." Daniel said, eager to change the subject.

"Alright, sounds like this is worth checking out. But first, you all need a day or two to rest, and in Daniel's case, visit a barber."


	3. Chapter 3: That which survives

Chapter 3: That which survives

The next day at 10:00, Carter, Teal'c, and Daniel were in the control room; eagerly awaiting the pictures the MALP would send back.

"Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c asked. "Is it not possible that Ra's Bane have survived as the Nox and Asgard have? For if they indeed live, they could be a valuable ally against the Goa'uld."

"Well, I've been considering the possibility. But, if they did survive, why didn't they come back to fight the Goa'uld once they rebuilt? According to the archive, it's been thousands of years since they fought the Goa'uld. What's more likely is that they moved to this planet but didn't successfully rebuild."

As Daniel finished speaking, they began to receive images from the MALP. The stargate appeared to be located in a vast, grassy plain dotted with small hills. They could see a few trees off in the distance. The planet's sun was high in the sky, and the atmosphere was very similar to Earth's.

"Alright, kids." O'Neill began. "You know the drill. Check out the local scenery, send a postcard, bring back some souvenirs…..and don't die. You have a go, SG-1."

As SG-1 stepped through the 'gate, O'Neill almost sighed with regret at not being able to go with them. As good as the General's parking spots were, he missed going through the 'gate more than anything.

The wormhole winked out of existence as SG-1 arrived on the planet. There was little to no cover near the 'gate, which made Carter had mixed feelings about. On one hand, there was nowhere for potential enemies to hide and wait in ambush, but it also meant that there would be no place for SG-1 to hide should a large group of foes be pursuing them.

Carter looked off into the distance with her binoculars after ensuring that the area around stargate was clear. She could see nothing but the planet's admittedly beautiful grassy plains stretching in all directions.

Teal'c was the least at ease out of his two comrades. He sensed other presences nearby, but unseen. Perhaps it was simply paranoia, but he had found that erring on the side of caution was rarely detrimental. He moved closer to Colonel Carter, attempting to act naturally in case they were indeed being watched.

"Major Carter." He whispered. "I sense that we are not alone here. I believe that we are being observed."

"Teal'c, there's no cover. Where would something, or someone, hide?"

"Perhaps they are making use of cloaking devices."

Carter seriously doubted that there was an invisible entity watching them, but she thought it better to be safe than sorry.

"Alright, we'll head back to the SGC, bring back some TER's and other gear."

She walked over to Daniel and instructed him to dial Earth. As he approached the DHD, a transparent blue bolt of energy hit him in the back of the head. As it did, his body glowed blue for a moment, and then he collapsed. Carter ran over to Daniel to check his pulse, he was still alive, but out cold.

"Sniper at twelve o'clock!" Carter called to Teal'c as she took cover behind the DHD, Teal'c quickly dove for cover behind the still intact MALP.

Carter and Teal'c both fired their weapons in the general direction that the shot had come from, but were unable to hit their unseen attacker.

Carter heard a quiet clicking sound from her left and turned to look. As she did, she saw a translucent figure, about seven and a half feet tall standing behind teal'c. It appeared to be pointing a weapon at him.

"Teal'c, look out!" Carter called as she pointed her P-90 towards the figure. Teal'c dived out of the way, allowing Carter to fire. Every bullet Carter fired made contact with her target, but the volley of bullets seemed to have no effect on their attacker. Teal'c quickly stood and pelted the being with staff blasts, which appeared to have about the same effect as Carter's bullets.

At that moment, the same kind of energy pulse that had knocked out Daniel made contact with Teal'c. He struggled to remain conscious for a few moments before succumbing.

The figure who Carter had been shooting at had readied his pistol at this point, and now fired it at Carter. she managed to evade the blast, but another shot from the strange weapon managed to connect with Carter, who quickly fell into unconsciousness.

When Carter woke up, she found herself sitting upright in a seat resembling those on busses or trains. When she fully came to her senses, she could tell that she was indeed, on a train of some kind. There were no windows, and the walls were made of some sort of metal resembling iron. For all she knew it was iron, but there wasn't any way to be sure. There were multiple rows of cushioned, metal seats, with a decent amount of space between them. Daniel and Teal'c were seated in the same row as Carter, but alongside the opposite wall. The seat in from of her was occupied by someone, or something in a huge, bulky metal suit with extra plating on its shoulders, arms, legs, and chest. The seat in front of Daniel and Teal'c was likewise occupied. Carter realized that the beings inside the suits were speaking English, very good English as a matter fact.

"You sure the Jaffa won't wake up?" the one in front of carter was saying. Their voices were very, very deep, deeper than a Goa'uld's if that was possible.

"I gave him the recommended dose of sedative for a Jaffa, and then some. He won't wake up for a while."

"He better be awake when we reach our stop, I'm not carrying them him all the way to the medical wing."

Carter noticed that the being seated in front of Daniel and Teal'c was more relaxed, and was facing his companion with one arm over the side of his seat. In addition, the suit in front of carter was painted a dark red, while the suit in front of Daniel and Teal'c was almost pitch black and was less bulky then the one in front of her.

"No need to whine, I got more of them you did, so you get to carry them. That's the way we agreed it would work."

"You cheated, you had a sniper rifle." The red suited being grumbled.

The black suited one looked at carter and then turned back to his comrade.

"Hey, I think the one you shot is waking up."

"Alright, I've got the sedatives right here."

The red suit turned to face carter and fired a small pistol at her, and she lost consciousness once again.


	4. Chapter 4: Necessary Percautions

Chapter 4: Necessary Precautions

When Carter awoke with a splitting headache, the combination of the stun weapons and sedatives had taken its toll. Once she had regained her senses, she noticed that she was still sitting in the same spot as when she had woken up last. The vehicle she and the rest of SG-1 were being transported in had come to a full stop. Their armored captors were standing up now, apparently waiting for something. She looked over at Daniel, who was beginning to stir. Teal'c, however, was still fast asleep. One of their captors looked over and noticed Carter's head moving.

"The humans are awake, but the Jaffa is still asleep. I think you gave him too much sedative." One of them said.

"Uh, he doesn't have-"Daniel began, intending to explain that Teal'c didn't have a symbiote and that they were, in fact, not agents of the Goa'uld. However, one of the armored beings interrupted him before he could explain anything.

"Protocol requires silence until you are told otherwise. Failure to comply will result in immediate termination."

Daniel quickly stopped talking, noticing the hooked knives that SG-1's captors were carrying. He noted that they looked remarkably similar to the weapon use by the Ashrak that had attacked the Alpha site two years ago.

One of the armored beings injected Teal'c with something, which seemed to be some kind of stimulant, judging by the fact that Teal'c woke up only a moment after he was injected with the substance. Before Teal'c could speak, his captors quickly informed him of the same protocol that Daniel and Carter had been warned of.

"Alright." Said the being in the red armor. "Now that you're all awake, we can finally proceed."

A door opened in the side of the vehicle, leading into a wide metal hallway with doors on either side every 15 feet. The hallway came to a four way intersection after about 60 feet, at which point there were fewer doors. Two more armor clad beings stood at the center of the intersection, holding rifles that vaguely resembled M-15's, their armor was colored a metallic red. As they approached the intersection, the figures stepped aside, blocking the passages to the left and right, then saluted to SG-1's captors as they passed by.

SG-1 was lead into what seemed to be an infirmary. There were multiple metal operating tables set up on the far end of the room, a cart of surgical tools stood ominously in the far left corner. The upper left wall was lined with cabinets, filled with containers of various liquids that no member of SG-1 could recognize. Five cylindrical containers, each standing at about ten feet tall. Each one seemed large enough to hold a human or Jaffa inside. Three of the containers opened with a hissing sound.

"Step inside." The red armored figure ordered. "Failure to comply will result in immediate ter-"

"Oh, cut it out, Lieutenant." Came a voice from the doorway. "You know very well that there is no protocol that requires…..visitors, be they willing or unwilling ones, to be terminated for any reason other than attempted assault."

Another armored figure, this time colored a shining, metallic gold, standing at about about eight feet tall, entered the room to get a closer look at SG-1.

"They're awfully quiet, Lieutenant, what other 'protocols' did you tell them about?"

"Um, he did mention that failure to keep silent would result in termination. I assume that's not actual protocol either?" Daniel asked.

"No, it isn't." the being replied. It then turned towards the red armored Lieutenant slowly. "You are dismissed, Lieutenant, but there will be consequences for this."

As the Lieutenant left the room, the Gold armored figure addressed Sg-1 again.

"Now, termination may not be part of protocol, but those chambers are. I'll need all three of you to step inside."

"Umm, may I ask what those things do, exactly?" Daniel asked nervously.

"They'll scan you for Goa'uld symbiotes, as well as hidden explosives or bio-weapons. I hope you can understand."

"We've fought the Goa'uld before, and we understand that they're not above resorting to those kinds of tactics." Carter replied.

"Good. Should the scanner detect none of the aforementioned objects, I will be able to give you a little more information. For now, however, I cannot tell you anything more about where you are."

Seeing no other way out, Carter and the rest of SG-1 stepped inside the containers, which closed silently.

For a few minutes, they saw only darkness, then the containers opened again. They all hoped that those had indeed been scanning devices, and that they hadn't walked into to some sort of brain altering device. The gold armored figure was still in the room, and it addressed SG-1 as soon as they emerged from the pods.

"Well, you're all clear. No symbiotes, oddly enough, even the Jaffa doesn't have one."

"Yes, well, the Jaffa has a name." Daniel said.

"And there might be time for you to tell me what it is, later. For now, I'm required to give you a ride back to the ring. In case you want to go back to wherever it is you came from. I wouldn't blame you for being eager to leave."

"Crap." Carter muttered under her breath. She had just realized that they had probably missed their scheduled check in. if they didn't get back to the gate in time, their IDC's might be locked out, if they weren't already. "We need to get back to the g-…to the ring as quickly as possible. How long does it take to get back to the ring from here?" their watches had been confiscated, so she didn't know exactly how long they had been gone. Time was probably not measured in earth hours on this planet, but since they spoke English Carter figured it was worth a try.

"Almost no time at all, actually." The armored being said, before it began to speak into its wrist.

"_Torag, _four to transport directly to the ring at my coordinates."

Suddenly, all four of them were enveloped in a bright light, and could hear a high pitched humming sound. The light and noise briefly stopped, and for a moment, they were standing on a large platform with bright circles of light at their feet. The light and noise started again before they could make out any other details of the room, and within seconds, they found themselves standing by the stargate.

"Thanks." Daniel said to the armored figure, who disappeared a few moments afterwards.

Carter finished dialing, and the wormhole flared into existence. Carter transmitted their IDC, and anxiously awaited the return signal…


	5. Chapter 5: Diplomacy

Chapter 5: Diplomacy

They returned, safely to the SGC. O'Neill hadn't even considered locking out their GDO's, thankfully. All three members of SG-1 passed their medical examination and were debriefed an hour afterwards.

"Well, that sounds like another planet never to visit ever again." O'Neill stated after he had heard about SG-1's capture and subsequent release.

"Jack, they thought Teal'c was still in the service of a Goa'uld. And besides, we've seen the Goa'uld attempt to plant bombs and bio weapons in people's bodies before. They only wanted to ensure the security of their planet. I think their caution was understandable, if a little painful." Daniel said, trying to make a case for returning to the planet.

"Daniel, how long ago did these people decide to run from the Goa'uld?"

"That would be about one thousand years ago."

"And they're obviously still alive and kicking. This would indicate that they managed to rebuild. Now, what you saw would seem to indicate that they have very advanced technology. They could give the Goa'uld some real trouble if they wanted, but they haven't. I suspect that they went the way of the Tollan. We don't need to deal with another group of people like that."

"Jack, there's nothing to indicate that they're not interested in helping us fight the Goa'uld. For all we know, they don't have the ability to build spaceships or use the stargate."

"Daniel, if they can't do either of those two things, how did they fight the Goa'uld in the first place? Let alone leave their home world and go find a new one."

"I agree with Jack, Daniel." Carter said. "They were enemies of the Goa'uld once. You'd think that they would have come back to defeat them after they rebuilt, even if only for the sake of personal pride."

"Teal'c, what do you think?" O'Neill asked.

"I am in agreement with you and Colonel Carter, O'Neill. They may have been great warriors once, but they seem to have lost their will to fight."

"Guys, we don't even know why they didn't come back and fight. For all we know some factor beyond their control prevented them from doing so. Please, Jack, just let us go back and find out why."

"Daniel. Carter doesn't want to go back, Teal'c doesn't want to go back, and I don't want you to go back. But, in the end the Pentagon gets the final say. I have to brief them about this, and then we'll see what they think. Dismissed."

O'Neill called them back to the briefing room the next day at 11:00 AM.

"Well, the pentagon seems to believe that we can potentially convince these yellow belied bastards to help us out." O'Neill said.

"I made the mistake of saying 'transporter' and 'cloaking device', I think they all started drooling after that. They want Doctor Weir to pursue diplomatic relations. I want you three to go with her. Your mission is to gather as much intelligence as possible on these people. Make sure that we aren't dealing with the Aschen all over again. You are clear to bring whatever equipment you think you might need."

"When do we leave, sir?" Carter asked.

"Five hours. Doctor Weir gets here in four. Dismissed."

Carter and Teal'c examined the SGC's armory to try and find weapons that might be able to harm the armored beings that they fought by the stargate. They considered RPG's, grenade launchers, and even an old death glider cannon. But they both agreed that their best bet for breaking through the armor was probably to get their hands on the weapons used by the armored beings themselves. Nevertheless, Carter and Teal'c both ended up taking a grenade launcher with them.

SG-1, along with SG-6, SG-7, and Doctor Weir assembled in the gate room at 4:00. The planet had already been dialed, and the MALP had arrived safely on the other side. This time, the MALP could clearly see a figure in metallic red armor standing in front of it.

"Alright, you have a go." O'Neill said. "Be careful out there, and hope that they don't eat chilled monkey brains on that planet, or something equally as unappetizing."

The three SG teams, along with Doctor Weir, went through the gate and arrived on the other side intact.

"Well, this a surprise." The armored figure commented. "I expected that you wouldn't want to come back after your last visit. Considering the first impressions that our trigger happy guards probably gave you. But not only are you back, but you brought more of your kind with you."

"I'm Doctor Elizabeth Weir, I represent-"

"Hold on a moment, I'm a soldier, not a diplomat." The figure interrupted. "I'm not trained to handle negotiations. My orders are to escort you to our embassy building, one of the many structures we thought we would have no use for. You are the only off world visitors we've ever had on our planet."

As Carter, Teal'c, and the other personnel did a quick examination of the surrounding area, Daniel noticed that the helmets on the alien's armor protruded forwards in an odd way, as if making room for a mouth or nose that was noticeably longer than a human's. As the figure led them away from the stargate, Daniel began to build a mental image of what this race might look like underneath the armor, and he really hoped he was wrong about their appearance.

The three SG teams, along with Weir, were led to a large metal hatch in the ground. The hatch opened to reveal a ladder that allowed them to climb down into a structure that closely resembled a subway station. A few meters to their left, a moderately sized metal cube rested on a metal track. As the armored figure approached it, a section of the cube's side slid away. All three members of SG-1 recognized the interior of the cube and realized that it was the vehicle that had been used to transport them from the gate to the building containing the scanner pods.

The armored being motioned for them to enter the cube, as he had already taken a seat inside it. Once all of the SGC personnel had taken seats, they felt the whole vehicle lurch forwards, causing the floor to shake. Once it settled, however, they could tell that the vehicle was moving smoothly forwards at an appreciable pace.

The ride was a very silent one. Their escort appeared to be on the lookout for trouble, and would investigate every sudden noise. After thirty minutes, the tram stopped, and the armored being visibly relaxed.

The wall slid away again, revealing the same hallway SG-1 had seen last time they were there.

"No need for the pods this time." Their escort said, as they began to walk down the hallway. "Our engineers designed a new and much improved version of our scanning device. Now you will be automatically scanned as you pass the intersection up ahead. However, due to certain technical restraints, only four of you may pass through at once."

SG-6 went first, followed by SG-7. However, as SG-1 and Weir were about to proceed, they were stopped by their escort.

"My captain wishes to speak with you three. However, the diplomat may proceed."

"Your captain doesn't need to be alone with SG-1 in order to speak with them. I request that they be allowed to follow us." Doctor Weir protested.

"They'll be able to catch up with you very quickly, I assure you. We won't keep them any longer than necessary." Their escort replied.

"Go on ahead, Doctor, we'll be fine." Carter assured her.

Doctor Weir grudgingly proceed through the scanner, followed by their escort. Leaving Sg-1 alone at the intersection.

They were soon joined by the familiar, eight foot tall figure that had escorted them to the stargate on their last visit. It was still wearing the same metallic gold armor.

"You came back? What were you thinking?" It asked them. "I would have thought that the rough treatment our trigger happy guards gave you on your last visit would have dissuaded you from returning. Apparently I was wrong."

"Our government made that choice, not us. Besides, you never told us that you didn't want us here." Carter replied.

"It's not that I don't, however, certain individuals didn't take too kindly to your visit. I'll explain once we reach a more secure location."

"Wait, what about Doctor Weir and the other people from our planet? Aren't they targets as well?" Daniel asked.

"Possibly. But don't worry, I think that the one you call Weir will be safe, seen as she is a diplomat. I've arranged for close associates of mine to see to the safety of your military personnel."

"No offense, but, how do we know you're trustworthy?" Asked Carter.

"I'll explain in a moment. First, I need to call for transport. We can discuss this further on my ship."

The figure then held his wrist close to his face and spoke into it.

"_Torag, _four to transport at my location."

Almost instantly after the figure uttered those words, SG-1 was enveloped in a bright light, and heard the same humming sound as when they had been transported to the gate on their last visit. After a few moments, each of them found themselves standing on glowing circles of light situated on a shining black dais. The walls, ceiling and floor of the room around them were colored a shining silver. On the far side of the small room was a console with various dials and buttons, a figure in dark yellow armor, about Teal'c's size stood behind it.

"Well, know that we're here, I can finally talk freely." The gold armored figure said. "I can also finally take this helmet off."

Suddenly, the helmet on the figure's suit began to fold backwards, revealing the face of the alien inside. As it did, Daniel's suspicions were confirmed. The face of the alien inside the suit was unmistakably reptilian.


	6. Chapter 6: The Watcher in the Shadows

Chapter 6: The Watcher in the Shadows

Most of the alien species SG-1 had encountered in the past were humanoid. With the exception of the Reetou, who also happened to be invisible. Nevertheless, SG-1 had seen enough strange things in their time at stargate command that a reptilian race wasn't that much of a surprise. Carter and Daniel showed no outward signs of surprise when the alien removed its helmet, Teal'c only raised an eyebrow.

"Now, I suppose I should explain why I believe that your lives are in danger." The alien said.

"We were kind of wondering about that." Carter commented.

"The political situation on my planet is quite…..delicate at the moment. You see, after we retreated to this planet, it took only a couple hundred of standard years for us to rebuild. However, many of our Generals decided that it would be a bad idea to go back to war. Not all of our Generals share this opinion, but there are enough of them to stop us from entering a second war."

"So, your military commanders decide whether to go to war or not?" Daniel said.

"Correct. The Generals understand war and the state of our forces better than any diplomat, so they are the most fit to decide whether a war is worth fighting. For many years now, the prevailing excuse for not battling the Goa'uld again is that they have most likely enhanced their technology greatly in the time we took to rebuild. Your arrival has invalidated this excuse. The staff weapon was clearly of Goa'uld design, and yet was unable to damage our armor."

"And, why would this make us targets?" Carter asked. "Killing us won't change anything at this point."

"The main issue now is intelligence. We know very little about Goa'uld movements and troop strength. Some among the leadership are considering an alliance with your people, and an exchange of technology for tactical information about the Goa'uld."

"Such an alliance would be far less likely if we were to perish at the hands of your people." Teal'c said.

"Exactly. Your people will be safe as long as they are in a public area, the stargate, unfortunately, is not even within the city limits."

"In that case, why can't we hold the talks on Earth? Or better yet, a neutral planet?" Daniel inquired.

"While some of our Generals are considering an alliance with your people, they don't yet trust you enough to go to Earth quite yet. You shouldn't worry about your diplomat though, she won't be staying long. Since this is mainly a military matter, it's likely that our leadership will ask for one of your military commanders to oversee the talks. I am confident that they will allow the talks to be held on a neutral planet, however."

"That'll be fun, I'm sure you'd get along very well with our commander." Daniel said, with no small amount of sarcasm.

"In any case, you're going to need something better than your primitive projectile weaponry if your government insists on your presence here. I believe I can give you a small sample of our weapons technology, if you will accept it, of course."

"That's an awfully big leap of trust for you to make." Carter said.

"I'm a starship captain, and I haven't gotten to actually put this ship to good use for a thousand years. You and your race are my people's best chance to do something useful for once"

"You've been alive that long?" Daniel asked.

"My people are extremely long lived in comparison to other races. Unlike the Goa'uld, we achieve this without technological means."

"Speaking of technology, I think we'll take you up on those weapons." Carter said.

"Good, follow me."

Carter, Teal'c, and Daniel followed the alien into a large, cylindrical elevator.

"Armory." The alien stated.

After a few seconds, the doors opened again. The alien led them across the hallway and opened the door to a large room filled with weapons of various types. Some of them resembled Earth made guns, albeit with various design differences.

"A lot of these weapons seem to resemble ours." Daniel said. "Your military ranks also seem to be similar to what we have on earth, not to mention the fact that you speak our language fluently."

"We adopted the common language long ago, as many races we encountered spoke it as well. Our names, however, are derived from our old language. Our weapons are shaped the way they are simply for design purposes. As for our rank system, that is pure coincidence."

"Speaking of names, we haven't really introduced ourselves yet." Daniel said. "I'm Doctor Daniel Jackson, the Jaffa is Teal'c, and our team's leader is Major Samantha Carter."

"Mine's Slarth. Don't be surprised if it doesn't exactly roll off your tongue."

The alien then handed them each a dark green pistol. The grips were slanted towards the holder, and a wide handguard sloped from the bottom of the weapon to the base of the grip.

"These weapons emit a powerful plasma burst when fired, the charge is enough to blow a hole in one of our suits of armor. However, due to the size of the weapon, it only carries enough power for one shot at a time. There is a miniature reactor inside each weapon which will recharge the power over time. The black button on the side of each weapon activates a cloaking device which will also serve to conceal the weapon from scanners."

"I see a bit of a design flaw here." Carter said. "How are we supposed to aim the weapon if it's cloaked?"

"Holding the grip tightly will disengage the cloak."

"Can you transport us back down? If there is an assassination attempt in the works, we need to get back to our people as soon as possible."

The alien led them back to the transporter room. As they were about to leave, however, something occurred to Carter.

"These Generals who oppose fighting the Goa'uld, were they on the front lines when you were fighting them?"

"Of course, in our military, promotions are gained only by distinguishing oneself on the field."

"When was the last time that any of them had a thorough scan?"

"They go through our scanners frequently, why do you ask?"

"It's nothing, forget I mentioned it."

As soon as SG-1 stepped on the transporter pad, there was a sudden, blinding flash of light and a high pitched ringing sound. Through the horrendous noise, they could barely make out the voices of two of the aliens in the back-round.

"Sir, the transporter is unresponsive."

"Then shut it off!"

"I can't, all control systems have been overridden. Something's putting massive amounts of power into the transporter, it's going to overload."

"Where is it taking them?"

When the noise and the light subsided, they were standing in front of the stargate, unharmed.

"What just happened?" Daniel asked.

"No idea. But we've got to find Doctor Weir along with SGs 6 and 7." Carter replied.

As they began to walk towards the hatch that led to the tram, the stargate began to activate.

Carter quickly gave the order to take cover and turned to face the stargate. As the gate activated, Carter caught a glimpse of a man standing next to the gate. He wore a dark blue business suit and a purple tie. His face was exceedingly pale, and he carried a briefcase in his right hand. She was about to point him out to Teal'c when the stargate activated, and the man casually walked behind it, just as two Kull Warriors stepped through the stargate.


End file.
